When legislators return to their statehouses, the usual suspects of concern will be waiting for them—and some new areas that have been waiting in the wings will rear their heads as well. States face looming fiscal problems in Medicaid, public pensions and budget gaps, as well as unemployment issues—both in the number of unemployed people who won’t receive benefits after federal extensions end and continued unemployment trust fund insolvency. That doesn’t even touch the problems of funding the everyday services constituents have come to expect. “A lot of state budget officers are concerned that we will have growth, which is...

In new, final regulations issued Wednesday, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) said that parents must pay a federal fine under Obamacare if their children or dependent spouses are uninsured for any part of the year. The regulations clarify provisions of Obamacare that seem to say that a parent will be held liable for Obamacare’s individual mandate penalty if they don’t have insurance coverage for their children. In its final regulations, the IRS states that parents will be made to pay the penalty if they can claim an uninsured child or spouse as a dependent, regardless of whether they actually claim...

The Environmental Protection Agency’s brazen contempt for free-market economics evidently knows no bounds. Less than a week ago, the Environmental Protection Agency received a slap on the wrist from a federal appeals court that ruled that the EPA may not force oil companies to pay for an credits for failing to comply with a rule mandating that they incorporate a certain amount of cellulosic biofuels into their product. The EPA estimated that the industry would produce and make available for purchase 8.7 million gallons of cellulosic biofuels in 2012, but the industry only actually produced less than 21,000 gallons —...

Dr. Scott Hahn has a number of different recorded talks where he discusses his conversion from being an Evangelical Protestant Pastor to becoming an ordinary Catholic layman. Some of those talks tend to focus more precisely on that specific period from when he was already a Protestant Pastor through his actual conversion to the Catholic faith, but this audio recording has a broader focus, and includes a longer period in his life, including some of the foibles of his youth. (This was originally just an audio recording, to which the "youtube" poster added some unusual slides for their "youtube video",...

JERUSALEM, January 31, 2013, (LifeSiteNews.com) - After a series of back and forth accusations and denials among government agencies, the Israeli Health Ministry has for the first time acknowledged that it has been injecting Ethiopian immigrants who are religiously Jewish with the dangerous contraceptive Depo-Provera without their consent. The allegation that the women were coerced into accepting the shot was denied at first by both the Joint Distribution Committee, which runs the clinics at the transit camps, and by the Health Ministry. The practice has been said to be going on for years. Ethiopian Jews accounted for 57 percent of...

Today must be International Backpedaling Day. Obama says: “Never mind a million EVs by 2015.” Under a new strategy announced today, the Department of Energy promised to support research into new battery technologies and manufacturing methods that would lower the cost of lightweight materials and improve vehicles’ fuel-efficiency, Reuters reports. But the DOE backpedals furiously from a goal set out in a 2011 State of the Union speech, where President Barack Obama announced what he called “Apollo projects of our times.” One of them was the goal for the United States to be “the first country to have a million...

A bill allowing the U.S. government to keep borrowing money for at least a few more months, beyond its record $16.4 trillion debt limit, won final congressional approval on Thursday, clearing the way for President Barack Obama to sign it into law. The Democratic-led Senate passed the bill, 64-34, a week after the Republican-controlled House of Representatives approved it, 285-144. Both votes were bipartisan. The legislation would put off until at least May 19 a showdown over the debt limit between Republicans, who demand more spending cuts to shrink deficits, and Democrats, who favor reducing deficits with a mix of...

Signs that Canadian citizens were involved in the attack by hostage-taking Islamist militants on a remote gas plant in Algeria are of great concern to American authorities, U.S. intelligence officials said on Thursday. While Algerian authorities apparently have not yet provided Western governments with cast-iron proof, a senior U.S. intelligence official said: “We’re taking very seriously the reports of the two Canadians’ involvement.” ... Confirmation that Canadian citizens were involved in the attack on the In Amenas facility in the Algerian desert would raise concerns about a worrying nexus between North America and North African militants. At least 38 plant...

Luckily, a "gay" dog was saved from euthanasia Thursday after someone launched a Facebook campaign two days earlier. A Tennessee animal shelter said an owner brought the dog in this week and called it "homosexual" after observing it mounting a same-sex dog. However, after a large response from the shelter's social media campaign, the animal was not euthanized.

STATEN ISLAND, N.Y. -- The plight of Hurricane Sandy victims has become a flashpoint in the Albany debate over the DREAM Act. Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis (R-East Shore/Brooklyn) is taking flak from Democrats for linking taxpayer-funded tuition aid for college-age illegal immigrants with Hurricane Sandy victims. Ms. Malliotakis says that Albany lawmakers should be more focused on helping storm victims than providing taxpayer-funded tuition aid to the children of illegal immigrants. "This should not be the focus of the Assembly or the state Legislature," she said. "There are more pressing issues in the state right now." Among those issues, she said,...

MIDLAND CITY, Alabama (Reuters) - A gunman suspected of fatally shooting an Alabama school bus driver before holing up in an underground bunker with a young child is a Vietnam veteran with anti-government views, authorities and an organization that tracks hate groups said on Wednesday. Law enforcement officials from multiple agencies were bivouacked near the bunker in Midland City but offered few details about a standoff with the shooter that stretched into its second day on Wednesday.Authorities said driver Charles Albert Poland Jr., 66, was killed after the gunman boarded a bus ferrying more than 20 children home from school...

Wine producers must "let greatness happen."It's time to stop relying on science if you want to make great pinot noir. That's the message that Wine Spectator columnist Matt Kramer gave to delegates at the Pinot Noir 2013 wine conference in Wellington, New Zealand, on Monday. Kramer controversially declared that truly great pinot noir is currently produced only in Burgundy. “Burgundy has something that no other pinot region has achieved," he said. "In Burgundy, two plus two equals five. How did they get that other one? How did they find it? “The challenge is not to get two and two equals...

As chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., will oversee any legislation on gun control that makes its way to the Senate floor. At the first in a series of congressional hearings on the issue Wednesday, his line of questioning suggested that expanded background checks and closing the so-called gun show loophole will be top priorities — and perhaps the only ones that stand a chance in the full Senate. Displaying his background as a Vermont prosecutor, Leahy confronted National Rifle Association CEO Wayne LaPierre on whether he had changed his support for mandatory instant criminal background checks...

Several West Virginia county sheriffs said they would defy any federal assault weapons ban proposed by President Obama. Earlier this month, Obama unveiled 23 separate executive actions to curb what he called "the epidemic of gun violence in this country." Additionally, he urged Congrees to pass a new ban on assault weapons and high-capacity magazines and asked for a universal background check requirement for all new gun purchases. If that ban were to become federal law, at least five West Virginia sheriffs said they wouldn't enforce it and vowed to protect people's right to bear arms under their interpretation of...

MARK LEVIN: What the hell's happening? Now we've backed the Muslim Brotherhood? And then of course, our dear friend Michele Bachmann and Louie Gohmert and three other brave members of the House of Representatives asked questions about the Muslim Brotherhood's infiltration of our own government and they're treated like pariahs. Well, the Muslim Brotherhood has infiltrated our government, it's called Barack Obama. No, he's not a formal member, he's a sympathizer. There, I said it. Prove otherwise. Meanwhile, you want to look into Obama's soul? You want to look into his soul? Well, look at his soul. You want to...

Dear Sandra, When I called in this, my manager's office, a few moments ago I was handed my very first American fan letter - and it was from you. I was so pleased that I had to sit down and type an immediate reply, even though Ken is shouting at me to get on with a script he badly needs. That can wiat (wi-at? That's a new English word which means wait). I've been waiting for some reaction to the album from American listeners. There were reviews in Billboard and Cash Box, but they were by professional critics and they...

The number of firearms turned in for the state-sponsored gun buyback programs held recently in Camden and Trenton broke records. In fact, they almost broke the bank. But state Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa promised that the cash-for-guns program announced today for Essex County would turn away no one empty handed. "This time I plan to have enough cash," he said. Joined by Acting Essex County Prosecutor Carolyn Murray, Chiesa today touted the success of the Camden and Mercer County gun amnesty programs and announced that Essex County's program will be held in five towns in mid-February. So far about $550,000...

Former Sen. Chuck Hagel on Thursday faced a barrage of criticism about his fitness to be the next defense secretary, including his agreement with a controversial statement that the United States is the “world’s bully.” President Barack Obama’s nominee to be defense secretary ran into sharp opposition from Republicans on the Senate Armed Services Committee who questioned Hagel on an array of controversial policies. Senators questioned Hagel about his opposition to tough U.S. policies toward Iran, his calling the successful U.S. military surge in Iraq a “blunder,” and his support for sharp unilateral cuts in U.S. nuclear forces.

As new weekly jobs numbers emerged Thursday showing a jump in unemployment claims and a report released the previous day showed the economy shrinking in late 2012, President Obama is effectively laying off his jobs council. ... To understand the abysmal nature of our economic recovery, look no further than the president's disinterest in learning lessons from actual job creators," spokesman Brendan Buck said. "Whether ignoring the group or rejecting its recommendations, the president treated his Jobs Council as more of a nuisance than a vehicle to spur job creation ... the council's primary purpose was to create the appearance...

More evidence is emerging of alleged summary executions by Malian forces in the north of the country where French forces are completing their operations. An eyewitness told BBC Newsnight he saw three Islamic students shot dead in a public place because they failed to show identity papers. The Malian government has promised to investigate the allegations. It says there should be no revenge attacks against people suspected of collaborating with the rebels. But there are fears that militia due to be deployed to the north are seeking vengeance against Islamists and Tuareg separatists. The main allegations against the Malian military...

by John HillStand With ArizonaWashington D.C. politicians and their allies in the mainstream media have frantically been pushing tough new restrictions on guns and ammo magazines, trying to manipulate public opinion in the wake of the Newtown, CT school massacre. But the Sheriff of the 4th largest county in the United States has a message for them: not in my county. Maricopa County Arizona Sheriff Joe Arpaio told a local radio host the federal government is “going to have problem” if they expect him to confiscate guns from private citizens. Arpaio told Mike Broomhead of KFYI Radio in Phoenix, Ariz. that...

Reports of Sarah Palin’s demise are almost certainly premature. Oh, sure: Mrs. Palin and Fox News announced an end to their increasingly strained relationship last week, and yes, some observers have been quick to write her political and pop culture obituary, with one writer comparing her to “a playground great who never made it to the NBA.” Still, those who know Mrs. Palin best caution against writing her off. “I think people underestimate her all the time,” filmmaker Steve Bannon, who made the 2011 pro-Palin film “The Undefeated,” told ABC News. “She has two things the factotums in the Republican...

Amid the fireworks following Seattle’s circus-like gun buyback and the antics in Oak Harbor over guns in parks, another front in the cultural war against firearms is being reopened next Monday evening when Town Hall holds a forum on “Gun Violence as a Public Health Crisis.” Already, Seattle-area gun activists are planning to attend the gathering, which begins at 7:30 p.m. at the Great Hall on Eighth Avenue in downtown Seattle. It’s a joint effort by Town Hall and the University of Washington School of Public Health. There is perhaps no surprise in the firearms community that none of the...

CONCORD – Flags, signs and guns filled the Statehouse steps Thursday afternoon as hundreds of residents from across New Hampshire gathered to rally for gun rights. In the wake of last month’s shooting in Newtown, Conn., politics have distracted lawmakers at the state and federal level, helping them to forget about individual liberties and constitutional freedoms, speakers and supporters argued throughout the event. But, with the right to bear arms in jeopardy, gun advocates vowed to remind legislators of their responsibility to the Constitution. “All of us know we are at a crossroads in our country,” event organizer Jack Kimball,...

January 31, 2013 (LiveActionNews.org) - I first heard about the Peterson family in what you might call a “chance meeting.” (Of course I don’t believe in chances; I believe that there is Someone who has a plan and a purpose behind the random occurrences in our lives.) And I firmly believe that this amazing family’s story needs to be told. It’s scary. It’s shocking. And its implications are dangerous. How many other hospitals starve babies to death, simply based on a “defect”? How many other doctors instruct new parents to leave their newborns to die or wallow in an institution...

AP BUSINESS WRITER TRENTON, N.J. -- The maker of Zoloft is being sued in an unusual case alleging the popular antidepressant has no more benefit than a dummy pill and that patients who took it should be reimbursed for their costs. --snip-- He said Pfizer produced two studies showing Zoloft worked better than placebo - the FDA's requirement for approval - but most Zoloft studies showed its effect was the same as a placebo. Dr. Michael Thase, who heads the mood and anxiety disorders program at the University of Pennsylvania's medical school, said research by others using the same unpublished...

Tuesday, October 11, 2011 Bishop Sample shares his Vision and Program for the New Evangelisation At the final session of the Convocation of Priests serving in the Diocese of Marquette, Bishop Alexander Sample spoke about his vision or program for the New Evangelisation. He summed it up by saying: It's the Gospel of Jesus Christ! This is very much in line with Pope John Paul II's view: that there is no need for any new program. However, Bishop Sample highlighted two central themes that are, as it were, coming over the horizon: the renewal of the Sacred Liturgy the work...

FR CANTEEN MISSION STATEMENT Showing support and boosting the morale of our military and our allied military and the family members of the above.Honoring those who have served before. Fabulous FRiday FAVORITES Tell us about your favorite Love Story Movie(s).An Affair to Remember" - 1957 "An Officer and a Gentleman" - 1982 Ghost" - 1990 "Casablanca" - 1942 "The Quiet Man" - 1952 "Titanic" - 1997 Sleepless in Seattle" - 1993 Remember, the Canteen is a family friendly place. We welcome the military, our allies, and their families.Continued prayers for the success and completion of your mission. Prayers for...

OLYMPIA, WA, January 31, 2013, (LifeSiteNews.com) – A bill being considered today in Washington state would force insurance companies that pay for prenatal care to also cover abortion, placing parenthood and termination of the unborn on an equally subsidized footing. The “Reproductive Parity Act” seeks to assure abortion will be covered under the state insurance exchanges set up by ObamaCare beginning in 2014. The federal health care act allowed states to opt out of such coverage. “I look forward to the legislature sending the Reproductive Parity Act to my desk, which I will sign,” said Democratic Governor Jay Inslee. State...

Ever since the allegations first made in November that Dominican-born eye doctor Salomon Melgen provided prostitutes for Senator Robert Menendez (D-NJ), a favor that appeared to be gravy on top of his large campaign contributions, the obvious question for us has been, "What has Menendez done for Melgen?" We believe that we have answer. After an extensive review of publicly available documents that link the two men, the answer relates to unusual actions on behalf of a port security company known as ICSSI. Ray Hernandez and Frances Robles detail in a New York Times story how Menendez sought to help...

Should the Senate confirm Chuck Hagel for defense secretary? Depends on how he does during the hearing No, his views on Iran and Israel are troubling Yes -- his controversial comments are being blown out of proportion No, his comments about the gay community are troubling

ABBOTSFORD, British Columbia, January 31, 2013, (LifeSiteNews.com) - The leader of Canada’s most high-profile abortion activist group is calling on a British Columbia city to remove a display of crosses from private property. The display of 1,862 crosses is set up on a farmer’s field in January for two months every year by Abbotsford Right to Life to commemorate the number of children who die in Canada every week as a result of abortion. The Abbotsford display Source: Abbotsford Right to Life This year’s display, called The Cemetery of the Innocent, will also include signs bearing messages like “Choosing abortion...

ALBUQUERQUE, NM, January 31, 2013, (Operation Rescue) -- New documents, including transcripts of a Medical Board disciplinary hearing held in November, 2012, indicate that late-term abortionist Shelley Sella committed four acts of gross negligence during a 35-week abortion on a woman with a history of previous Cesarean Section that resulted in a ruptured uterus. The documents were released recently by the New Mexico Medical Board in response to an open records request made by Tara Shaver of Project Defending Life. Both Mrs. Shaver and Operation Rescue had filed the original complaints with the NMMB after receiving a 911 recording of...

At NASA’s Climate 365, there is an interesting story posted with this statement and a graph: Some say scientists can’t agree on Earth’s temperature changes Each year, four international science institutions compile temperature data from thousands of stations around the world and make independent judgments about whether the year was warmer or cooler than average. “The official records vary slightly because of subtle differences in the way we analyze the data,” said Reto Ruedy, climate scientist at NASA’s Goddard Institute for Space Studies. “But they also agree extraordinarily well.”All four records show peaks and valleys in sync with each other. All...

New court paperwork reveals that prosecutors have unlocked a great deal more information from Trayvon Martin's cellphone, including satellite-tracking information that shows where it was in the days leading up to his shooting. But if it also lays out the teenager's movements Feb. 26 — the day Trayvon was shot and killed by George Zimmerman — prosecutors have not released that to defense attorneys. Defense attorney Mark O'Mara disclosed that information Wednesday in a new court filing, one asking for more time to prepare for trial. ....... Information from Trayvon's phone is one example. The Android-powered smartphone was found near...

While most of the media appears to have stopped asking why Adam Lanza killed, there are at least two people who haven’t stopped; the father of six-year-old Arielle Richman, Jeremy Richman, and the mother of six-year-old Ana Marquez-Greene, Nelba Marquez-Greene... --snip-- “The prosecutor in the case, Danbury State's Attorney Stephen Sedensky III, said he cannot release information about Adam Lanza's mental health because of the Connecticut Rules of Professional Conduct, which covers all attorneys in the state. His office is reviewing whether details of Lanza's mental state can be released to the public after the police report is completed, possibly...

UPDATE: it’s worse than we thought, see below. Carbon has closed below $4 a ton in a new record low while Deutsche Bank bailsFrom Reuters:Deutsche Bank quits carbon market: board member31 Jan 2013 12:42 Last updated: 31 Jan 2013 15:04LONDON, Jan 31 (Reuters Point Carbon) – Deutsche Bank has shut its global carbon trading operations, a member of the investment bank’s board of directors said on Thursday. Source: http://www.pointcarbon.com/news/1.2162216In addition to the price dropping to below the price of a bag of charcoal briquettes, it may have something to do with this investigation: Deutsche Bank co-chief named in carbon tax investigationTwo...

N.Korea 'Poised to Conduct Nuclear Test' North Korea appears to have completed preparations for a nuclear test with the installation of measuring equipment near the entrance of an underground test site in Pungye-ri, North Hamgyong Province, a senior government official here said Thursday. South Korea and the U.S. are considering military steps in addition to diplomatic pressure and economic sanctions if the North goes ahead with the test. President Lee Myung-bak convened an emergency meeting with diplomatic and security officials on Thursday morning to discuss Seoul's options. In a statement issued after the meeting, the government said, "If North Korea...

January 31, 2013, (LifeSiteNews.com) - Just as Ontario’s new Premier Kathleen Wynne has announced plans to reintroduce an explicit sex-ed program, the Marriage Anti-Defamation Alliance, and our friend Damian Goddard have released a great video about a striking case where exactly this type of program has been used as a battering ram against parental rights. Wynne, the first open homosexual to lead either provincial or federal government in Canada, was the architect of Ontario’s controversial equity and inclusive education strategy during her years as Minister of Education. She was also behind this new sex-ed program, which would have students learning...

Garrett McNamara, 45, claims he broke his previous world record by surfing a nearly 100-foot wave in Portugal earlier this week. A photo released Tuesday, Jan. 29 by the Nazare Qualifica organization shows McNamara riding a giant wave atop the Nazare Canyon, a 1,000-foot deep underwater canyon off the coast of Portugal

See NASA Graphic at link. NASA Earth Observatory's Suomi Satellite captured the night time glow from hundreds of flares from rigs drilled into the Bakken shale oil formation of North Dakota, a 360-million-year-old tectonic plate, creating a light show the size of metropolitan Boston. Fracking of the Bakken formation has liberated the oil that lies within...Flaring burns off excess natural gas during oil production. The controversial process effectively wastes a natural resource while simultaneously emitting carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. As of 2011, more than 35 per cent of North Dakota's natural gas production was burnt off in flares according...

I was asked at the Realtors Leadership conference in Washington DC this week about the coming trend for homeownership. My response? Bleak. In fact, I said the homeownership rate could fall back to late 1980s, early 1990s levels of 64% .. or even lower. Why? No one (other than me) wanted to discuss the tax and insurance premium consequences of the (Un)affordable Health Care (aka, Obamacare). We all know the tax consequences of Obamacare, but few realized how insurance premiums will skyrocket. Here is a report from Treasury on the premium surge in Obamacare. The “cheapest” plan for a family...

BEIRUT (AP) -- An Israeli air attack staged in Syria this week may be a sign of things to come.Israeli military officials appear to have concluded that the risks of attacking Syria are worth taking when compared to the dangers of allowing sophisticated weapons to reach Hezbollah guerrillas in neighboring Lebanon.With Syrian President Bashar Assad's grip on power weakening, Israeli officials fear he could soon lose control over his substantial arsenal of chemical and advanced weapons, which could slip into the hands of Hezbollah or other hostile groups. These concerns, combined with Hezbollah's own domestic problems, mean further military...

Now that ObamaCare is actually happening, labor unions who made a big push for the legislation three years ago are no longer rallying behind it. Unions are seeing healthcare promises made by President Obama broken left and right in the form of higher costs, more bureaucracy, loss of doctors Obama promised they could keep, slashing of healthcare benefits and more. Union leaders say many of the law's requirements will drive up the costs for their health-care plans and make unionized workers less competitive. Among other things, the law eliminates the caps on medical benefits and prescription drugs used as cost-containment...